Chapter 108: A Princess Seeks His Help

After spending some time with her husband and helping Luo Yunjin deal with some urgent matters in the sect, Ji Yan returned to the secret realm. Gu Yuan, meanwhile, remained outside, watching Ji Yue as she sat in the middle of the enormous array formation, absorbing starlight.

Of course, he wasn’t merely admiring his wife. He was also studying the formation itself. Contact with an array of this level was immensely helpful to him, especially now that he had already become an Earth-Grade Array Master and was working toward the Heaven Grade.

Gu Yuan spent several more days observing the formation before taking out his saber and beginning to practice the Blood Moon Severing Saber Technique.

He had made considerable progress in this Heaven-Grade technique as well. He could now execute its second move, Moon’s Descent, leaving only the third move, Blood Moon Severance, beyond his grasp. Naturally, he intended to master it.

Gu Yuan contemplated the Way of the Saber and the logic of the technique as he moved. He drew the blade overhead and let it fall, again and again, tracing the pale arc of a descending moon, feeling for the instant the arc ended and the next should begin. Each time, the blade cut slightly cleaner. Each time, he failed to find the last thing the third move demanded. He went back to the beginning and tried again.

During his practice, he couldn’t help remembering Jian Wushuang and how the man had comprehended Sword Intent. Could he achieve something similar? Not sword intent, but saber intent?

The thought stayed with him.

It should be possible. Gu Yuan had no special physique tied to the saber, but he was confident in his comprehension. If Jian Wushuang could comprehend Sword Intent, there was no reason to assume that he couldn’t comprehend Saber Intent himself.

With that goal in mind, Gu Yuan devoted his time to explore the concept. However, Intent was not something that could be forced through sheer persistence. He continued practicing his other techniques and cultivating as usual, dividing his time among his various pursuits rather than putting everything else aside for an uncertain breakthrough.

In this manner, another ten years passed.

Gu Yuan still hadn’t comprehended Saber Intent, but his persistence had not been fruitless. He had finally mastered the third move of the Blood Moon Severing Saber Technique, Blood Moon Severance.

His progress in array formation and forging remained slower. Despite his efforts, he was still some distance away from reaching the Heaven Grade in either discipline. His cultivation, on the other hand, had advanced steadily.

He had broken through to the Eighth Stage of the Spiritual Core Realm. His body cultivation had also progressed, allowing him to break through from the Flesh Tempering Realm into the Inner Palace Realm.

At this stage, he needed to refine his internal organs as a whole. Rather than strengthening each organ independently, he had to bring the body’s internal systems to a higher level, allowing them to function together and withstand the strain of increasingly powerful physical refinement. It was a more demanding process than the previous stage, requiring patience and careful control.

Gu Yuan would have liked to devote more time to body tempering, but he currently had something more important to attend to.

"When is she going to arrive?" He muttered.

Almost as if answering the question, Ruxi appeared at the entrance of his room. He permitted her to enter.

After a polite greeting, she said, "Young Master, Wei Ruyan, the former princess of the Wei Royal Family, has come to visit you. Should I let her in?"

"Princess Ruyan?" Gu Yuan repeated, genuinely puzzled by the unexpected visit.

He had no idea why she had come to see him. Still, the thought of Zhou Yucheng, the man who had been pursuing her, and whether anything had developed between them stirred his curiosity.

"Show her in," he said.

-----

In a separate room meant for receiving guests, Gu Yuan met Wei Ruyan.

The room was nothing like his own. The floor was ice-jade, cool and smooth enough to reflect the ceiling. Cushions threaded with gold lay on seats carved from spirit wood, and a hovering cluster of luminous pearls shed a soft, even light. In one corner, an incense burner filled the room with a faint, soothing fragrant.

After exchanging greetings, Wei Ruyan fell silent. Gu Yuan didn’t rush to fill the silence, either.

He took the opportunity to observe his guest. Her long blonde hair framed a face of quiet beauty, and she carried herself with the effortless elegance of a princess. Yet there was nothing cold or distant about her. The vulnerability in her expression, coupled with her gentle eyes, stirred an instinctive urge to reassure her, to shield her from whatever burden weighed upon her.

Looking at her, somhow Gu Yuan could understand why his Senior Brother had fallen for her.

Wei Ruyan let out a soft breath, tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear, and finally spoke. "I want to leave the sect and check on my family. Can you help me?"

Gu Yuan blinked. "If you want to leave, then go. Why are you asking me?"

"It’s like this. The Sect Master has forbidden me from leaving the sect. I would have liked to discuss the matter with her, but she’s unavailable. My next option was the Sun Fairy, but she’s away as well. So I came here, hoping you could resolve the matter."

Gu Yuan rose from his seat. "If that’s the situation, I’m afraid I can’t help you. Please go back."

"Please, hear me out!" Wei Ruyan raised her voice and caught his sleeve, stopping him.

Gu Yuan paused and glanced at her hand. Realizing what she’d done, Wei Ruyan quickly let go and drew her hand back.

"I’m sorry. It’s just..." She hesitated before continuing. "Half of the royal family has died at the Sun Fairy’s hands, and the rest are fighting among themselves. I want to return and mediate the situation. Please, help me."

"I’m sorry, but that’s difficult." Gu Yuan shook his head.

Someone else might have softened at her plea, but Gu Yuan knew Ji Yan well enough. She wasn’t some justice-driven cultivator, but she was also not someone who went around killing people for no reason.

If half the royal family had died by her hands, then there had to be a compelling reason for that.

Not to mention, the fact that the survivors were now fighting among themselves instead of standing together to overcome their predicament only reinforced his doubts about them.

Wei Ruyan bit her lip. "Then can you at least let me meet the Sun Fairy? I’ll speak with her myself."

Even if you did, nothing would change. Ji Yan would not go against her sister for the sake of some unknown outsider. And even if it were an acquaintance, nothing would change.

He kept those thoughts to himself and sighed. "If you can’t leave the sect yourself, why not ask someone else to go and help your family?"

"And who would be willing to involve themselves in the royal family’s dispute?"

Wei Ruyan knew all too well that after the Royal Family had been stripped of every treasure it held in exchange for the Sun Fairy’s mercy, no one cared about them anymore. The sects that had never cared about royal authority would certainly not step in.

Without outside support, it seemed only a matter of time before their country was absorbed by another power and the remaining members of the royal family were wiped out.